Punchdrunk
by SuperGiantRobot
Summary: Twilight wakes up at the tail-end of an accidental bender.


The beam of sunlight shone from the gap between the curtain and window and directly into her face. Twilight's eyes slowly opened and then snapped shut in the glare. _Just like Celestia to ensure her prize student is up and at 'em. Didn't anypony tell her I have an alarm clock?_

"Just let me sleep for a bit longer. Please?" she whined weakly. She tried her best to return to her slumber, but the light was insistent; a sudden pain in her head joined in. _Well, no rest for the wicked, I suppose. I'm not sure how that includes me, though..._ Her head throbbed again and she remembered the previous evening.

_Oh wait; that's right. Wicked. That's me._

Her head throbbed more insistently, quickly growing into an even sharper pain. _I don't know how it's possible, but I swear I can actually **see** my heartbeat.._. She moaned piteously.

Then the alarm clock kicked in.

She yelped in pain and shock, knocking the clock off the bedside table. It landed with a clunk and the sound of cracking glass.

"Awright..._awright_. I'm _up_. Cut it out, already," she mumbled to the sunlight and the murdered alarm clock. She gave a yawn and stretched.

She'd slept wrong again and her left fore and hind legs were asleep, nearly collapsing beneath her as she rolled onto her hooves. She stumbled to the bathroom as the buzzing in her legs abated and smacked her lips slightly as she looked in her mirror. A pair of bleary bloodshot eyes greeted her.

She blinked heavily but didn't find herself getting any better looking; if anything, she found she was getting worse. Her headache began shouting for attention again, having grown stronger still. It now felt as though somepony had taken her horn and stabbed her in the brain with it.

_I think getting up was a bad idea._ The pain stabbed again. _Yep. Definitely a bad idea..._

When the agony in her head stopped to take a breath, she used the precious few seconds to cast an analgesic spell to the best of her weakened ability. Her horn let out a dim flickering light, like an old dying lightbulb. The pain abated.

Sort of.

_And now I know what a hang-over is like. I guess the saying is true: there really **are** some things better left unknown_. She shook her head very carefully. _I could just see sending Celestia a letter on the subject: 'Dear Princess Celestia; I accidentally got hammered last night and I've now learned why doing that is a bad idea.' She'd probably laugh her wings off._

She grumbled to herself. _'I got this special new punch recipe' Pinkie says. Ha! I **thought** it tasted kind of salty. I should have just stopped after the first glass, but the more I had the more I liked it..._

Twilight exited the bathroom in the hopes of leaving the horrible creature that resembled her trapped in the mirror. She made her way towards the bedroom door, smacking into the wall twice before getting the door open. As she slowy and delicately crept out of her room, a small purple and green dragon looked over to her. His green eyes opened wide in shock.

"Geez, Twilight; what _happened_ to you? You look like you've _died_!"

Twilight growled under her breath. "Yes, and a lovely good morning to you too, Spike. And for your information, I _feel_like I've died."

"Are...are you sick, Twilight? Is it contagious? Aw geez, am I gonna get sick, too? Please tell me I'm not gonna get it!" Spike gave a quick look behind himself to ensure there was nothing to impede him as he began to back away from Twilight nervously, looking for an exit.

"No, Spike; it's not conta...contee...You won't catch it. I haven't caught a virus; this is the result of a pink pony and her spiked punch. And this time I _really_ mean spiked. I'm gonna _kill_ her..."

Spike breathed a sigh of relief and then began snickering. Twilight impaled him with a look of pure malice. "Don't you_dare_ laugh at me. I hatched you, and I bet I can put you right back in the egg if I try hard enough."

"I'm...I'm sorry, Twi...But you should _see_ yourself! 'member that bird nest you made last Winter Wrap-Up? Your mane looks just like that. And then there's the _rest_ of you! You look like a badly abused rug..." his snicker began growing into a laugh.

"Yes, Spike. Thank you, Spike, I'm aware of my appearance. You know, I never make fun of you when _you're_ sick."

"But Twilight, you just said you weren't..."

"Not my _point_, Spike. Oh, never mind; all this is doing is adding a headache _to_ my headache..." Her stomach rumbled. "Maybe if I get some breakfast in me, I'll feel better."

Spike covered his mouth with a clawed hand, but the odd burst of laughter still escaped. Twilight shook her head and continued on before coming to a sudden stop.

_Oh no. The stairs. How could I have forgotten about the stairs?_ She leaned her head forward to look to the distant floor below before vertigo made her pull back. She was struck by the odd feeling that the staircase seemed to be mocking her.

As Twilight considered simply staying on the upper floor and ignoring the stairs - each step of which seemed like a cliff right now - her stomach rumbled again.

She ran both options through her head for a few seconds before there was an even louder growl. "Okay," she whispered, "Shut _up, _please. I'm doing the best I can here."

She sighed in resignation. _Well, one hoof at a time, I suppose. I really don't want to do this, but if I want to eat..._

She gently descended the stairs, taking each step with the greatest of care, as though she were navigating her way through a minefield. Fortunately, after having gingerly made her way about halfway down, her pain-relief spell finally began to kick in at full force and her vision cleared, though her head still ached somewhat.

_Ah. Much better. I think I can manage the stairs now._ Twilight carefully continued down the staircase, feeling better with each step. By the time she reached the bottom she was still bleary, but her mind was clearer and the pain that had remained quieted to a slightly stinging throb.

Spike leaned over the upstairs railing and called out. "Do you want me to make you something for breakfast, Twilight? You don't look like you're up to it right now."

"It's okay, Spike. I'll just have a bowl of cereal. I'm not sure I want anything more complicated anyway." She trotted towards her modest but well stocked kitchen. She swore she could hear Spike snickering behind her again as she made her way, but she decided to ignore it.

She'd probably find the whole thing funny herself at some point. Not now, obviously, but as the saying goes: 'If you can't laugh at yourself...' She slowly and carefully levitated a bowl and a box of granola to the table. The fridge door opened with a rattle and a bottle of milk made its way over to her. Twilight managed to fill the bowl without spilling much of it.

She trotted over to the kitchen table and began eating. As she ate, her mind returned to the previous evening.

***

It had been a good day overall; the book she had patiently been waiting for had finally arrived. It was an extremely rare tome; it had taken close to a month to locate a copy and Twilight almost literally clapped her hooves with joy when it arrived. It was a spellbook she had heard of, written by the creator of several of the more obscure magicks she used in everyday life and Twilight had desperately wanted to see it.

As she engulfed herself in the newest addition to the ever-growing shelves of books, there came a tapping at her door, punctuated by giggles.

"C'mon in, Pinkie", Twilight called, opening the door from her reading desk, her eyes still glued to the tome in front of her.

"How'd you know it was me?" asked the frazzle-maned pink pony as she entered, a wound up scroll with a pink bow balanced between her ears.

"Magic, Pinkie. Also I could hear you giggling," replied Twilight.

"Oh. Yeah. I do that quite a bit, don't I? Just can't stop once I get started; I just giggle an' giggle an' gig..."

Twilight looked up from the book and Pinkie broke off.

"_Any_way, I brought you an invitation!"

"_Another_ party? Didn't you just have one last week?" asked Twilight, pulling the scroll over to her and opening it.

"Well _yeah_, but that was a big ol' 'everypony' party. This one's kinda different. It's a..."

"...'Just For You' party'?" finished Twilight, having read the invitation. "What's a 'Just For You' party, Pinkie?"

Pinkie began giggling again. "It's this _real _neat idea I had. Like I said; my parties are _big_ parties, but what if I had a_small_ party? You know, instead of everypony being there, it'd just be a couple of friends or even one? A 'Just For You' party. Sort of like a _secret_ party. Wouldn't that be neat?"

Twilight considered for a moment. "You know, that _does_ sound like an interesting idea..."

"Oh, I'm _so_ happy you think so, Twilight! So you'll come, then?"

Twilight set a bookmark between the pages she has been reading and closed the book carefully. "Certainly. I've got this new book to work on, but I have to admit to being intrigued," replied Twilight. "It could be a whole new party-market for you; I wouldn't miss it for the world."

_"Great!"_ Pinkie squeaked happily, clapping her hooves. "I'll see you later tonight, then. It'll be a party for two; just for me and you. She paused. "Hey, that's a pretty neat rhyme; I'll have to remember that for next time!" She paused again, ran the last sentence through her head and began to giggle once more.

With a cry of "See you later, Twilight!" she rocketed out of the library. Twilight closed the door after Pinkie had made her exit.

That night, Pinkie arrived to escort Twilight. Pinkie was the image of formality, the illusion tarnished somewhat by her breaking out in quiet giggles from time to party itself was actually quite nice; an extremely subtle affair, even by Pinkie's standards. There were no noisemakers or confetti, no loud music or streamers, just a snack table and a couple of balloons.

Okay, _some_ streamers too, but just for a bit of atmosphere. It was a Pinkie party, after all.

Pinkie, as stated, was extremely subtle and low-key. She had said this was 'sort of like a secret party' and it almost seemed as though she actually believed it, trying to make as little noise as possible as if she thought someone might be listening in. The snacks were as wondrous as always and served out in portions that were _just_ the perfect size: not to large and not too small. Later that evening she brought out the punch and things rapidly went downhill from there.

In retrospect, Twilight probably should have realized she was drunk when she had tried dancing on the snack table. She wasn't exactly an expert when it came to inebriation other than what she'd read in books, but attempted table-dancing was probably a good sign. It _seemed_ like the right thing to do at the time and _Pinkie_ sure found it funny, forgetting the secretive nature of the party and laughing uproariously while packing away the punch.

The rest of the evening was pretty much a blur, though she thought she remembered party hats and _possibly_ a kazoo being involved at some point.

The sad part was that except for the salt it was actually darn good punch.

***  
>The bowl of granola was exactly what she needed right now; a bit of food in her belly made the last of the pain vanish as quickly as the cereal did. She was still a touch light-headed, but the worst was over. Even her mood changed for the better: she was still mad at Pinkie, but she probably wouldn't kill her. Probably. She put away the milk and cereal, deposited the bowl in the sink and gave a hearty stretch, her ribs and back popping lightly.<p>

She should probably tidy herself up now that she was feeling better. Spike may have put it in an unflattering manner, but even she had to admit she was a mess. She trotted back up the stairs, resisting a childish urge to stick out her tongue at them as she pulled a towel out of a small closet, which followed behind her like a friendly ghost.

She entered her bathroom and closed the door behind her. Soon there was the sound of water spraying and Twilight singing a simple melody.

Ten minutes later the door opened, releasing a burst of humid fog. Twilight exited, the towel draped around her midsection, a brush hovering above her and running through her damp mane. She continued humming the song she had been singing in the shower as she dried herself off.

_This must be what it's like for Rarity when she visits the spa. I think I may seriously consider taking her up on her offer if she invites me again; this feels **marvellous**.  
><em>  
>She sighed happily as she finally dried off, setting the towel in a hamper and her brush back in the bathroom.<p>

_Well, now that I'm back to normal and finally feeling good, I should get back to the new book..._

Twilight trotted back downstairs and over to her desk, prepared to get in a good day's reading, when she suddenly came to a halt as a thought struck her.

_You know what? To **heck **with the book right now; I'm feeling too good to just coop myself away. I'm in no rush to finish it, regardless; it can wait one more day._

Twilight considered this for a few seconds more.

_Yes. Yes, that's **exactly** what I'll do. A bit of time off never hurt anypony._

Having made her mind up, she headed towards the front of the library.

"I'm going out for a bit, Spike. Mind the library while I'm gone," she called over her shoulder as she opened the door.

Spike ceased sorting the innumerable books the library seemed to have and turned to Twilight, a concerned look on his face.

"Do you want me to come too, Twilight? I mean, in case you need someone to carry stuff for you or something?"

"No, I'm just going for a walk," replied Twilight. "I want some 'me' time; now that I'm feeling better I want to enjoy it."

Spike gave Twilight another slightly worried look. "Are you _sure_ you don't want me along? I mean..."

"No, it's fine, Spike; I promise I'm okay."

"Well...if you say so..." he replied as Twilight exited. After fretting for half a minute, he shrugged his shoulders and went back to sorting.

***

The warm sunlight felt _lwonderful_ as Twilight trotted through the streets at random. A day off was just what the doctor ordered, and today was a good one to take a break on; the weather couldn't have been any more perfect. The weather patrol had really outdone themselves.

_Spike's a sweet little guy to worry for me like that, even if he teases from time to time,_ she thought, as she enjoyed the sunlight and her stroll. _I think I'll stop off at the Boutique and see if Rarity has some spare gems I can give him as a treat. I'll mention my interest in the spa as well._

Many Ponyvillians waved a hoof at her as she wandered. She waved back and smiled. Soon she began to hum the tune she had sung in the shower. It really was a marvellous day, even considering the start of it.

As she passed Sugarcube Corner, the door rattled open and a bright pink pony emerged and stepped out, her head drooped down and her body twitching slightly. A voice was heard from inside the shop. "Are you sure you want to go out, dearie? You look _awfully_ ill..."

" 'm okay, Mrs. Cake. Jus' need some air s'all..." mumbled the bedraggled pony, unsteadily closing the door behind her.

Twilight smiled evilly as Pinkie limped towards her.

_First things first, though. I may have decided to let her live, but she's **still** gonna get a piece of my mind...  
><em>

Back at the library, Spike continued his work. He sorted the books by type, ensured each book was on the correct shelf and dusted them when needed, often passing by Twilight's prize possession as he toiled. After a few more minutes of sorting, placing and dusting, Spike stopped and turned his attention to the book. Twilight had been _awfully_happy when it had arrived, even more so than usual for her additions to the library.

She had been particularly engrossed in the book, having spent most of yesterday reading it - often murmuring appreciatively to herself, going back and re-reading pages and taking notes - and Spike found himself growing curious as to its contents: even after the morning she'd had, Twilight still wanted to read it before suddenly changing her mind.

_I wonder what it's about? It's got **Twilight** hooked, but she'd read through a dictionary just to find new words to use. It's **probably** just some stuffy ol' reference book, but it can't hurt to take a peek, I guess..._

***

Pinkie laboriously raised her head to look to the right of Twilight. "Hi, Twilight," she croaked. Her head lolled over to Twilight's face. "Hey Twilight." Pinkie's head continued to Twilight's left, practically drooping onto her right shoulder. "Howya doin' Twi...Wait. Why are there three of you? And why are you all looking at me like that?"

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "You know full well, why, Pi-"

Pinkie, with supreme effort, managed to get her head upright. She attempted to the best of her ability to keep a steady eye on Twilight. "Have you been messing around with your spells again, Twilight? You know the smell from your last mistake took almost a week to clear up." Pinkie's balance failed her and she fell onto her rump. "Oh Celestia; even my _mane_ hurts..."

"Wait; so that _wasn't_ a practical joke, then?"

"What wasn't, Twilight?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Putting all that salt in the punch, Pinkie..."

"Hey, you shouldn't mess with salt, Twilight. You'll get all drunk if you have way too much ()..."

Twilight's patience began to wane the further on the conversation went. She was about snap at Pinkie but held back after getting a good look at her. Pinkie, if anything, looked even more miserable than she had and seemed to be unable to stop shivering. Pinkie closed her eyes which were almost the same color as the rest of her.

"So you _didn't_ do this on purpose?" asked Twilight, after helping Pinkie up and giving the extra-frazzled filly a few moments to compose herself as best she could..

"Didn't do what? Pinkie asked, confused.

"Spike the punch."

"What does Spike have to do with anything?"

"No, I'm not talking about Spike, Pinkie. I mean the punch."

"You want to punch Spikey? C'mon, Twilight, that's just _mean_. Violence is _never_ the answer, you know."

Twilight's teeth ground.

"So anyway, you were saying something about my doing something on purpose? What did I do?"

"**_SPIKE THE PUNCH WITH SALT, PINKIE PIE!_**" shouted Twilight, having finally been pushed to her limit.

Pinkie ducked as though she's had a rock thrown at her. She moaned lightly and fell again, rolling onto her side and feebly attempting to raise her forehooves to cover her ears. "Oh, that's right; I remember now. Please say that less loud and more quiet next time."

After a few seconds of flailing her legs, Pinkie managed to get back onto her hooves and bring her head upright again. "Now, I like a practical joke as much as the next filly, but that's going a smidge too far. Maybe a _few_ smidges."

Pinkie appeared to give this some thought. After a moment, she piped up. "Can you _have_ more than one smidge?"

Her head, having given up trying to keep upright any longer, lolled onto her shoulder again, overworked by the effort involved in keeping her bloodshot eyes on Twilight. Her left foreleg wrapped around her right and she began losing her balance once more. She stumbled over to the wall of Sugarcube Corner in an attempt to keep herself upright. Twilight trotted over and braced Pinkie with her side so she wouldn't fall once again.

She cast the spell she had used on herself - stronger in Pinkie's case, since she'd had a great deal more of the punch than Twilight - and, after a short burst of painful whimpering, Pinkie began to visibly strengthen. Her quivering abated. Pinkie shook her head and took several deep breaths. "Ah, that's _way_ better. Thanks, Twilight. I'm sorry, Twilight. I swear to Celestia I'll avoid punch for a week..."

"So what happened, Pinkie?"

"Well, you know how sweet I like my stuff to be, right?"

Twilight nodded.

"And how usually I figure enough sugar is never enough?"

Twilight nodded.

"And how, if you've been really busy and not paying attention to what you're doing, a small bag of sugar and a small bag of salt look a _lot_ alike?"

Twilight winced.

***

Spike set the book he'd currently been sorting back onto the small stack in front of him. He grabbed a hoofstool and pulled it over to Twilight's reading desk so he could see her new book properly. He read the cover:

_**"The Cantronomicon"** huh? Well, it's got a cool **title**, anyway. Let's take a quick look..._

Ensuring Twilight's bookmark didn't fall out, Spike picked a random page and began to read ...

***

After getting Pinkie's pledge to keep a much closer eye on what she was doing when making party snacks,_especially_ punch - which Pinkie readily agreed to, shuddering at the mere thought - Twilight left the still slightly shivering pink pony behind. She made her next stop the Boutique; she'd made two promises, even if only to herself, and followed through on them. The door jangled as it opened.

The white unicorn looked up from the magazine she had been reading. "Why _Twilight_, it's so nice for you to pay me a visit. And you should see yourself. You practically _glow_!"

Twilight grinned. "And I _feel_ great too, Rarity. The day didn't start so well, but a hot shower and a walk around and now I feel like a million bits!"

"Mm. Yes, I know _exactly_ what you mean, Twilight. The ability to make hot water at will is _truly_ one of ponykind's greatest achievements. Amazing how that can perk you up on a bad day, isn't it?"

Twilight agreed; it was almost a form of magic in itself. "I came here for a couple of reasons, Rarity. I was wondering if you might have any spare jewels on-hoof. Spike's been particularly good for the last while, and I wanted to..."

Rarity held up a dainty forehoof to gently shush Twilight. "Say no more. I always have a few set aside for my favorite dragon. The only dragon I _know_, come to think of it. I'll find the best I have available and deliver them to Spike myself. He'll probably faint from pure joy." She laughed lightly. "But you said there were a _couple_ of reasons you visited; we have one out of the way, what were the others, pray tell?"

Twilight cleared her throat. "Just one, actually..."

Rarity looked at Twilight expectantly and she cleared her throat again.

"Well, you've invited to take me to the spa a few times and I've always said no, but after this morning, the shower felt so good that..."

"...you wish to 'take the plunge', as t'were. I would be _absolutely_ delighted! You, Fluttershy and I, having a proper 'filly's day out'; just we three! I have the weekly meet-up with Fluttershy scheduled for next Thursday; I'm _sure_ they wouldn't mind if one more joined, not for one of their favorite customers. And I'll ensure you only get the _best of the best_ for your first time. "

They spent the next few minutes making small talk. Rarity showed Twilight the magazine she had been reading, _"Hot and Not in Canterlot"_ and had been taking notes; using somepony else's design as a catalyst can often evolve into something new and unique of your own. It was much the same as with Twilight and the new spell book, if you thought about it.

Soon, however, Twilight found herself lost as Rarity began to go into the technicalities of her craft. She had never known fashion designing could be such a complex affair; the amount of work involved was often equal to some of her experiments. She had a new respect for Rarity; she wasn't aware just how much effort she put into what she did.

After a short while, Rarity had to beg off talking any longer: she had a special order to take care of and had only been taking a short break; if Twilight hadn't arrived when she had she would have been too busy to talk.

"I'll leave you to your work then, Rarity; I just know whoever it's for will be dazzled." Twilight turned and headed to the door.

"That's nice of you to say, Twilight. _True_ too, for that matter." Rarity winked and gave a grin. "Feel free to visit whenever the mood strikes - my door is always open - and I'll see you Thursday."

Twilight nodded and exited. Rarity retreated to the back room and fetched the reams of fabric she would need for the dress and the jewels needed to accentuate it. She set some of them aside for Spike.

_So, her first time at the spa, hmm? Well, I just **know** she'll enjoy it. A good massage can do wonders for a filly. She looked through the cubbies that held her tools. Now **where** did I put that gold thread...?_

***

Twilight considered visiting her other friends, but Dash was off visiting her aunt and uncle in Cloudsdale and Fluttershy wasn't at home. There was a polite and apologetic note on the front door of her cottage stating that she was visiting Zecora's hut in Everfree forest and would be back later in the afternoon. Some time ago, Zecora had offered to show the timid yellow pegasus some of her herbal remedies that would help Fluttershy take care of her animal friends and Fluttershy had taken her up on the offer.

The two had really hit if off: after getting over her natural fear of the zebra, Fluttershy found that Zecora, while rather forward and even somewhat intimidating in her way, had many skills that complimented hers and was freely willing to teach her. Zecora herself was rather fond of Fluttershy in turn; apparently the pegasus reminded her of a favorite niece.

That just left Applejack, but Twilight assumed she was working at Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack had been quite busy lately: there were crops to plant and every second was needed 'to ensure everything grew in all nice an' proper-like', as the blonde-maned pony would have put it.

Twilight didn't want to bother Applejack at so important a time for her, so she decided to head back to the library and continue on with the new book. She'd had her fun (and it _had_ been fun, there was no denying that), but now it was time to get in a bit of work.

Twilight slowly trotted home and began to hum the song again.

Halfway back, she heard a voice call out from behind her. "Twilight! Goodness, girl, I thought you'd still be at yer library."

Applejack caught up with Twilight. She was wearing a saddlebag filled with seed and supplies that she had just purchased and was about to return to the farm when she'd seen Twilight making her way down the street and humming to herself.

"I'm just heading back, actually. I wanted to get out for a bit," replied Twilight, smiling.

"A good day fer that; fine growin' weather, too. An' I can see it done you good as well; you look pleased as punch!" Twilight gave a very slight wince at the mention of punch. "So yer latest spell 'speriment was a success?"

Twilight blinked as Applejack continued.

"I saw the flash through the library window as I passed by. Weren't no smoke or stink, and you weren't rushin' out like you were on fire or nothin', so I figgered everything was peachy. Then on my way back I see you struttin' along, happy as a clam. Musta been somethin' awful impressive."

Twilight blinked again.

"No need to be modest 'bout it; you can boast a bit if'n y'want. What's this new one do?"

Twilight blanched. _Oh no. He **didn't**.._. "Gotta...gotta go, Applejack. I just remembered that I...um...I left a bunson burner...um...burning. " She galloped off to the library.

Applejack stared after the swiftly retreating unicorn, nonplussed. She pushed back her stetson and gave the top of her head a scratch. "Was it somethin' I said...?"

***

The door of the library slammed open and Twilight rushed through in an absolute panic . Her eyes shot over the inside of the library, looking for the dragon.

"Spike? _**SPIKE!**_ Can you hear me? Say something, _please_!"

Spike's voice came out from behind a bookshelf. "Over here, Twilight..."

"Oh thank Celestia..." Twilight sighed, nearly sobbing with relief. "Are you hurt? Please tell me you're okay; I'd never forgive myself if you were hurt!"

"I'm okay, Twilight," Spike responded. "Sorta. I mean all'a me is here, anyway. Sorta."

"Did you read that book I'd just gotten?" Twilight asked.

"Um...no..." replied Spike, nervously.

"Spike, this is vitally important: _did_ you or _didn't_ you?"

Spike sighed in resignation. "Yeah, Twilight. I took a quick look at it; I wanted to see what it was that had you so excited. But I just looked at one page and didn't even read all of _that_. Honest!"

Twilight closed her eyes and shook her head. "Spike, that's a _magic_ book, and a fairly powerful one, too. You have to have training just to _read_ one of those properly. Some of them read _you_ too, if you aren't careful."

"Sorry, Twilight..." Spike replied, sounding embarrassed.

"That's okay, Spike, you couldn't have known; this was my fault for not warning you before I left. Now come out and let's see what the damage is, so I can get you back to normal. Why are you hiding from me, anyway?"

Spike was silent for a moment.

"If I come out, do you promise not to laugh?" he asked, tremulously.

"I promise, Spike."

"_Really_ promise?"

" '_Cross my heart and hope to fly; stick a cupcake in my eye_,' " swore Twilight, raising a hoof solemnly.

"Yeah, but do you really, really, _real.._."

Twilight rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Spike, if you _want_ me to help, I have to see you."

Spike was silent again.

"Okay, but just remember: you _promised_."

There was a rustling sound from behind a bookcase and a purple rabbit with green ears and tail slowly crept out. It turned a doleful green gaze up at the unicorn.

Twilight made a supreme effort to keep herself from laughing but she snorted nonetheless, her face breaking out in a huge grin. The rabbit's eyes narrowed.


End file.
